It took him longer to get to Bristol though - three and a half hours compared to one and half on the train

Peak-time return train tickets between London and Bristol cost between £210 - £218.10.

He said: "I found the car on Gumtree. The lady I bought it from, Sutinder, was basically selling it for scrap.

"It’s a very old car, 1997 Honda Civic, but the MOT was fine. Plus, the engine was small enough that I could get the cheapest road tax: a minimum of six months for £81.38.

"The total cost was £206.81. Less than just ONE train ticket. And I still have a car at the end of it."

Of course, it's quicker to get the train - the journey from London to Bristol takes around an hour and a half, while on a good run it will take two and a half hours in the car.

Tom did get stuck in traffic on the M25 and roadworks on the M4 so it took him three and a half hours.

And buying an old banger doesn't come without its risks - it could have gone bust on the way down and then Tom would have been left forking out the recovery costs.

How to save money on your train ticket

RAIL fares have gone up by an average of 3.4 per cent from the start of 2018. Here's what you can do to lower the costs:

Book in advance - Most ticket sellers release a few cheap seats for every journey around 12 weeks ahead of the train leaving the station. You can save up to 80 per cent which could shave off around £100 off the price of a journey from London to Edinburgh.

Get a rail card - National Rail offer a number of railcards that can get you a discount on certain fares, such as the 16 to 25 railcard and the two-together railcard. All of the above cards cost around £30 for a year but you won't be able to use it during peak times.

Try ticket-splitting - Split your tickets by seeing if it's cheaper to buy more than one ticket for segments of the journey, even though you're on the same train. For example, if you're travelling from Leeds to Oxford tomorrow, a one-way advance ticket costs £99.40. But if you split your ticket by travelling from Leeds to Birmingham New Street (£60.10) and then from Birmingham New Street to Oxford (£18.50), then you can pay £78.60.

Buy a season ticket - If you have a regular commute you get every day it might be worth buying a monthly or annual season ticket rather than forking out each day.

Buy two singles - Sometimes it's cheaper than buying a return ticket so it's worth checking out before you part with your cash.

Book First Class - Sometimes booking first class tickets can be cheaper than a standard fare on long train journeys.

"It wasn't hard to find a cheap car for around £150 near where I live," Tom told the Sun Online, "but I did test drive it before I bought it.

"Yes, it is still expensive. The point is to show how mad train ticket prices are. Sometimes you have to think outside of the box to save money.

"However, I'll be the first to admit that this isn't the cheapest method. You can book tickets in advance and off-peak for less.

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"You may be able to use a railcard. Or you could get a coach. But for those of us who aren't able to, why do the train companies insist on ripping us off?

"At the end of the trip, I still have a car. I'll probably sell it again. After some TLC, I think I can get £200. You get your unused road tax refunded so I might even be in profit! That’s real bargain hunting for you."

We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online Money team? Email us at money@the-sun.co.ukor call 0207 78 24516.Don't forget to join the Sun Money's Facebook group for the latest bargains and money-saving advice.